Syria’s ‘Moderate’ Rebels Suffer Defections to ISIS

Loudly endorsed by the US for years as their “vetted, moderate” rebels of choice, the Free Syrian Army (FSA) is courting the United Arab Emirates for increased funding, saying it needs help as it aims to “reform.”

The FSA has a much smaller footprint across Syria than it once did, having lost virtually all of its territory to rival rebels, and seeing mass defections, including large numbers joining ISIS.

The Syrian National Coalition (SNC), the self-proclaimed government-in-exile based in Turkey, aims to reform the FSA under more direct political control, and is waving the prospect of using them against ISIS as an effort to get more foreign subsidies.

Yet the FSA and other factions just got done signing a non-aggression pact with ISIS on Friday, and it’s hard to imagine the group’s fighters will willingly break that for foreign aid, particularly when they’re so dramatically outmatched by ISIS fighters at every turn.

The FSA’s ability to recruit and keep fighters seems to be heavily weighed down by the group’s lack of success so far, as the group has not shown itself to be particularly adept at anything but currying favor with Western nations, and what arms its obtained from them are quickly distributed to other factions, which do all the heavy combat.

The United Arab Emirates has joined the US coalition against ISIS, and could likely use sending some funding to the FSA as its excuse that it is “doing something” as a coalition member. It is hard to imagine, however, that any amount of money could turn the FSA into a major faction on the ground.

Author: Jason Ditz

Again: there never was a "moderate" rebel/s in Syria, but there were plenty of thieves and professional murders or those who were trained by Erdogan/NATO regime and like savages released into Syria where they were put on payroll by Saudis/UAE, later the fifths column of Saudis/UAE barbarians from turkey joined the group of a Europe street intellectuals which they become what is ISIS today.

The emblem of a moderate rebel/s is a fantasy word, there never was and never will be because of the nature of those that are involved is not based on democracy nor being moderates, look at Saudi Arabia, look at regimes in UAE, look at USG look at English history of warmongering with colonial slaving attitude toward other nations, moderate rebel/ is laughable, yet sad for the fact where people are being fooled by such delusional wording.

oddie

Times of Israel: Israeli Arab leader: Shin Bet behind Islamic State
Head of High Follow-up Committee says Washington, Jerusalem created group to divide and conquer Arab world
Muhammad Zidan, head of the High Follow-up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel — an umbrella organization representing Arab civil society and municipal politicians — said Friday that “the Israeli Shin Bet and the US are the ones who invented IS in order to create new divisions in the Arab world and the region which will serve them.”
“The question asked here is: Who provides IS with weapons? Who stands behind them financially? The answer is clear: The US supports IS in order to ease its takeover of the region,” he said.
Zidan was speaking at a gathering in Nazareth of the radical northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, attended by thousands of people. The leader of the branch, Sheikh Raed Salah, spoke against IS and its actions at the event, but said he opposed the US-lead coalition to defeat the group which “in my opinion represents a danger to the Arab world.” http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-arab-leader-…

oddie

this is the meme, one way or another, in almost all MSM coverage – how orwellian can it get?

NBC: Washington Risks Falling for Syria's ISIS Strategy, Again
So far, the most enthusiastic response has come from the Syrian regime of Bashar Assad. It’s hardly surprising. In fact, it follows a consistent Syrian tactic of using Islamic militants to create instability — and then relying on the U.S. to destroy them…
ISIS is in many ways a creation of the Syrian regime… http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/isis-terror/wash…